ElfEver Week
by NonsensicalCheshire
Summary: This is just a compilation of all the prompts I did for ElfEver Week back in May of this year. You might have seen them, since I posted them on tumblr.
1. Cuddle

Contrary to what one might believe, Evergreen cuddled a lot. Like, a lot. Not that she would tell anyone, though. The fearsome, stoic, emotionless woman of stone? A cuddler? Never. Not on her life would she tell a person. The only people who really knew were her teammates, but that was no surprise, since they were the people they typically cuddled with. (Laxus allowed it begrudgingly.)

Evergreen had been alone all her life. There was never a person by her for countless years. It was so lonely, so _cold. _She'd never known the warmth of a person. She's speculated that that might be the reason why she likes to curl up next to people so much; it told her that there was someone there right next to her.

_She wasn't alone anymore._

She certainly wasn't alone now, curled up next to Elfman in an inn in the middle of nowhere coming home from a job.

As far as she could tell, _someone_ (she's thinking Bickslow) let slip to Elfman that she was a cuddler. They were going to regret that, just they wait. She just needs to find out who they are…

. . . . . . . .

**What Happened Really:**

"Hey, the master asked me to drop off this for you guys." Elfman held out the bag to Bickslow who stood in the doorway. The tall man took it from him and nodded. "Also, he needs me to relay a message to Laxus."

"Alright, come on in. I'll go get him. He's probably still asleep." Bickslow opened the door further and retreated into a room of the Raijinshuu's apartment.

"Oh, Elfman." Elfman looked over to the source of the voice. Fried Justine sat on the couch in the living room reading a book. "How's it going?"

"Fine, Fr- Is that Ever?"

It came to Elfman's attention that there was something in Fried's lap; a mound of messy brunette hair. The green-haired man had been stroking it when it came to his attention, but now he stopped and looked over at Elfman with what seemed like a half-amused, half-irritated expression.

"No, I have a strange woman curled up in my lap." He shrugged sarcastically. "Of course it's Ever. She does this a lot."

"Cuddles?"

"Yeah, it's a habit of hers. She's like a cat, really." Fried went back to stroking Ever's hair and reading his book.

"Why are you staring at her creepily?" came a low, growling voice. Elfman's head whipped around from the two on the couch to a shirtless, tired, disgruntled looking Laxus. He also looked a little miffed. On the couch, Fried smirked a little.

"I-I wasn't-" Elfman waved his hands. Laxus had murder in his eyes. "Iwasn'tIswearpleasebelieveme."

Laxus grabbed Elfman by the shoulders and steered him out the door. "Let's talk in the hallway, pal."

. . . . . . . .

And that's the story of how Elfman figured out Evergreen cuddled and also went home with a black eye.

. . . . . . . .

But, as Evergreen pressed up closer to the large, sleeping mass who had his arms around her, she thought that maybe she wouldn't kill whoever had let it slip. Being next to him was actually… quite nice. Even though he snored. And it sort of ruined the moment. (WAITTHEREWASNOMOMENT) But Elfman was very… warm.

She slung her arm over his chest and closed her brown eyes again. Just this once.

Just once.

. . . . . . . .

Elfman grumbled and opened his eyes, then immediately winced when sunlight piercing the window fell on his face. He lifted a hand and rubbed at his eyes with it, then noticed a slight weight against his side. He looked over, somewhat hesitantly, to see Evergreen huddled up next to him, her arms slung over him. Brunette curls hung messily around them. Right away he breathed deeply, blushed, and looked away- at the ceiling, the sheets, the wall.

How had they gotten into this position again? Elfman wasn't good at remembering things, especially not in the morning.

. . . . . . . .

**The Previous Night**

"C'mon, we gotta get you to the inn! You're bleeding a lot!" Elfman growled and dragged her along in the freezing rain.

Evergreen was shivering, and her messy hair hung in her face, covering her glasses and plastering itself to whatever body part it came into contact with. Over her gray flannel shirt she wore Elfman's coat. Over her midsection was a shaking hand. The area was slowly leaking quite a bit of blood.

"Leave me alone, stop nagging. It's not bleeding a lot-" The woman winced and doubled over.

"A real man wouldn't leave you alone," he muttered. "And yes, it is bleeding a lot."

The two had gotten sent on a mission by the master. Just the two of them. Alone. For, like, a week. Alone. _Alone_. The moment she'd gotten back to her and the Raijinshuu's shared apartment, she'd sat in her room's corner doing absolutely nothing for about an hour other than blushing, but whether it was from irritation or excitement she didn't know. Elfman had done almost the same, but on his couch.

The job was to apparently head to a town where a lot of robberies had taken place. Locals had found the warehouse of the criminals, but wanted wizards to fight them, since it was suspected that some of the members of this gang were wizards themselves. And so Elfman and Evergreen had left the next day, bickering all the trip, and arrived ready to beat something up.

They had gotten their wish upon storming the warehouse, but it had taken a turn for the worse there. Not some of them were wizards, but _all. _Had that information been known before the request was made, a team of at least four would have been sent out, Evergreen knew, rather than just the two of them. With cuts and bruises in the end result, they had managed to take down all of the gang members and sat down for a moment.

Then, faster than either could react, she had been shot in the side.

The once who had done it was turned into a statue faster than she could run from the two. But that hadn't fixed the issue of the bleeding in Ever's side that she had made worse by clawing out the bullet. Frantic, Elfman had simply thrown his coat over her and started dragging her along while she tried to stop bleeding.

And then there they were, rushing as fast as possible to their inn, in the pouring rain, so they could properly bandage her up.

By the time they'd gotten back to the room, she'd balled up the sleeve of his coat and was pressing it very firmly against the wound. Shaking, she fell on the floor, crossed her legs underneath her and breathed deeply; pain control, he realized, as she gripped the leg of a nearby table. Elfman bent down in front of her. Shivering and sopping wet, she looked up at him, her lips pressed together.

"Sorry about your coat," was all she said.

"It's fine," he mumbled, shaking water from his mane of white hair as he unwound some bandages. "Take off your shirt."

"Excuse me?"

He just then realized how that must've sounded. "N-No! Not like-I mean-You-JUST DO IT."

"Well, apparently I completely misunderstood your character, and-"

"NO, I-" Unable to form a sentence without it sounding wrong, Elfman instead showed her the bandages.

"Ah. That was it. Just hand them over, I'll do it myself," Evergreen said, holding out her free hand. Without a complaint he handed them over to her and she, stumbling, headed off into the bathroom.

"Gah." Elfman went to the sink and splashed his face with water. "That wasn't as easy as we thought it was going to be, eh, Ever?"

Silence for a moment, then: "It wasn't. But, we managed. You know, when we stop arguing, we can make a pretty okay team."

Elfman stopped for a moment, a smile creeping onto his face.

"-but we're still not as good as the Raijinshuu."

Moment gone.

He left to go out into town, braving the still pouring rain, to bring back something to eat, but not before making sure several times that Ever was sure she wasn't going to bleed out while he was gone. Even through the door he thought he could imagine her beyond annoyed face. She'd made it so many times that it was permanently etched in his mind.

"Ever?" He entered the room and kicked the door shut behind him, bags in each hand, dripping water. "You okay?"

No response. Was she really okay? What if her wound had opened again and she was somewhere bleeding?

"Ever!"

It was then that he noticed the door to the room was slightly open. After setting down the bags, Elfman opened it a bit wider and poked his head in. Sure enough, Evergreen was laying on the bed, and she seemed to be totally asleep. Her bloody clothes were discarded by her suitcase, and all she wore was a short, black night dress that ended mid-thigh.

Elfman sighed and entered the room, shutting the door behind him. "Had me worried for a second," he muttered to himself. She didn't move, except for the rise and fall of her chest as she slept. "And you can't hear me."

The rain was still going on outside, he noted as he toweled out his hair. Done with that, he sat down on bed beside her. "Well, you got yourself into a heap of trouble. That's not manly."

Well, of course it wasn't manly. She was a woman. And she'd be rolling her eyes and pounding his face in if she'd been awake to hear him. Elfman smirked and laid down on the bed.

"I don't think, or at least I really, really hope, you'll mind if I sleep her for tonight."

He knew she was going to kill him in the morning.

. . . . . . . .

Ah. That was how. Elfman sighed quietly, doing his best not to be heard. Maybe if he could move very, very, _very _slowly, he could get out of bed without her knowing.

Evergreen stirred a bit and groaned, pulling the covers over her head to block out the light.

Too late.

Elfman shut his eyes, said a silent prayer for protection, and waited for her to wake up fully.

After a minute, she pulled the covers down and, without opening her eyes, sat up, then reached over him for the nightstand.

She grumbled, "Morning," and continued her search.

It was pretty safe to say that Elfman Strauss was shocked that he wasn't yet dead.

He glanced over at the black nightstand that was just a little bit out of reach of her outstretched fingers to see what she was looking for. Her glasses. Obviously. Gently nudging her off of him, he sat up and grabbed the frames for her, putting them in her hands.

"Oh." Evergreen seemed a little surprised at his help. "Thanks." And she slid them on and blinked open her eyes.

"Morning," she said again, then swung her legs out of the bed, then winced and clutched her side, but recovered and knelt down by her suitcase, rummaging around it.

"You're not going to kill me?" he asked hesitantly.

She froze, slowly turned, and stared at him. He could see her soft blush and tightly pressed lips as she glared. "I think that's a little bit extreme. So long as you didn't touch me inappropriately-"

"A MAN WOULDN'T DO THAT."

The brunette snorted and turned back to her suitcase. "You have too much faith in 'men.' You're one of the good ones."

Elfman quirked an eyebrow. "Thank… you?"

"Mmm," was all she hummed as she slipped into the bathroom.


	2. Date

A/N: We all know that the Raijinshuu and Laxus would be freaking out over Evergreen, and Elfman's sisters doing the same to him. It was fun to think and write about. Also, bonus points to whomever can catch the Doctor Who reference.

. . . . . . . .

Evergreen grumbled and fluffed her curly hair again, then fiddled with her black skirt, then tugged at her red blouse. None of it looked _right_. Did it look like she was trying to hard? It felt like it.

"Ever, you've been standing in front of the mirror for ten minutes," Laxus sighed, stepping into her room.

"Laxus Dreyar, did I _say _you could enter my room?"

He stepped behind her and put his hands on her shoulders, ignoring her. "I think you look-" Laxus coughed and turned his head away. Evergreen coyly smirked and looked over her shoulder at him. "You look-"

"He means to say you're super hot tonight." Bickslow laughed and stood in her doorway, his puppets floating about him and mimicking parts of the sentence.

"Well of course she is." Freed lifted his head up from her bed where he'd been laying down. "I helped her pick out her outfit, of course."

"Aww, Freed, you're such a good dad~" Bickslow teased.

"Sh-shut up!" Freed shouted, turning to face the wall. He was blushing, Ever could tell.

"Now remember the rules?" Laxus asked, squeezing her shoulders. "Well?"

Ever sighed irritatedly and turned her head away from him. "Stop acting like overprotective parents, geez."

"That wasn't the answer we were looking for, young lady." Laxus teasingly scolded.

"Okay, okay: I can't let him touch me on the first date-"

Freed said from his new position by Bickslow, "Good girl."

"-so that means no k-k-kissing in front of the door-"

"There ya go," Bickslow cheered.

"And when is curfew?" Laxus prompted. Evergreen wished he was teasing. He wasn't.

"I don't need a curfew."

"Then what's stopping you from staying out with him all night and maybe staying over at his place?"

"MIRAJANE IS. ELFMAN AND MIRA AND LISANNA LIVE IN THE _SAME HOUSE_. I THINK THEY WOULD H-HEAR IF I SLEPT WITH HIM OVER THERE."

"Don't take that tone of voice with me. When. Is. Curfew?"

"Gah. Curfew is 12:30." Ever mumbled, sitting down on the bed and sliding into a pair of high-heeled boots.

"If you're not back by then-" Freed warned, leaning into her face. Ever put up a hand to stop him. His face collided with it.

"I'm 20 years old! I can _behave _and be back by stupid curfew, okay?"

"You sure?" Bickslow stuck his tongue out in his typical way. "It _is _you first date with a guy you really, really like~"

Evergreen blushed and looked down at her lap. Despite being a beautiful young woman, boys generally steered clear of her due to her stupid magic. Stone Eyes seriously put limits on how much intimacy she could allowed and how many dates she went on.

Ever stood and pushed her way through the crowd of men and exited their apartment.

. . . . . . . .

"Nee-chan, I look fine," Elfman mumbled as Mirajane tried to fix his messy hair. The short woman had to stand on a step-stool to do so. Lisanna sat on his bed, giggling and rolling around on the comforter, filled with laughter and amusement.

"Yes, yes, you look very handsome, she'll be all over you, but I just want you to look _perfect."_

"I don't think she wants me to look perfect," Elfman said.

This made Mira freeze, remove her hands from his hair, and clamber down the stool. Standing on her toes, she smoothed out non-existent creases in his black leather jacket. She smiled up at her little brother.

"You're right, little brother!" she chirped. "Sorry, I just got a little freaked-out." She waved her hands dismissively. "It's just that this is your first date. You never really wanted to go on one since, well-" Her large blue eyes were turned to the floor. "You were afraid that whoever you loved could be another Lisanna."

Lisanna stopped laughing and looked at her hands. Tears that she didn't let her siblings see pricked her eyes. Had she really made her big brother that afraid of love? That he would end up hurting and possibly even killing another? Lisanna felt awful. Mira sat down on the bed next to her and pulled her close, stroking her fine white hair.

"Nothing was ever your fault, Lisanna." Elfman straightened his coat. "It wasn't you that made me afraid- it was me. I scared myself."

Mirajane still stroked Lisanna as she spoke to Elfman. "When's curfew, young man?"

"Nee-chan…"

"Don't 'Nee-chan' me. When is curfew?" Mira set her eyes on him sternly. Lisanna covered her mouth with a small hand.

"12:30… You know, I bet Ever doesn't have to deal with this kind of stuff."

. . . . . . . .

"I'll bet you don't have to deal with this kind of stuff," Ever complained to him. "I swear, they're so overprotective, just because I'm the only woman on the team, and the youngest."

Elfman looked up at the trees they were walking under, then glanced down at her. "Actually, Nee-chan is really strict about that stuff."

Evergreen looked thoughtful. "I can imagine, yeah."

"I just can't see the Raijinshuu being protective over you. When I look at them, I don't exactly see 'caring and protective.'"

"Well, obviously you see 'protective.' We're _bodyguards _after all."

"I meant, like, in a sibling sort-of way."

The brunette woman stopped to look at a patch of gray flowers in one of the parks flower beds. "I suppose it must seem odd to outsiders," she mumbled, fingering a petal. "But Freed and Bickslow have always been like that. It took Laxus a little while longer to get protective of me." She smiled. "Sometimes it's a little unfair."

Elfman was confused. "Unfair that they're protective of you?" That just sounded weird to him.

She straightened up and continued on her way. Elfman followed. "I mean that if I get hurt on a job, they'll get very… weird. On the next job they won't let me leave their sights, or they try to protect me in fights, and I don't get it."

"That's because they're your family and they love you."

Evergreen stopped dead in her tracks. Elfman gradually slowed and turned to look at her, confused once again. Man, he got confused a lot. The woman tilted her head and smiled slowly.

"I… guess you would know how family acts. Maybe you're right." She continued to walk. "So where are we going?"

It was Elfman's turn to stop. "Uhhh…"

Ever turned and held her hands out in a "Really?" sort of a way. "I'm going to assume that you don't have any plans."

"Nope."

Evergreen sighed and pulled back her bangs. "Well, I guess we'll just go on a walk."

"I-is that really okay?"

"Of course." She smiled and continued on her way. "I like walking."

. . . . . . . .

"What do you see? What are they talking about?" Freed leaned out from behind the tree. Laxus pushed the bushes aside so he could see through the leaves.

"I don't know, stop asking!" Fairy Tail's strongest mage hissed back.

"Guys, really?" Bickslow stood completely unconcealed behind them.

"Really?"

"Guys, really?"

"Really, guys?"

"Yeah, really!"

"Bickslow, you get down!" Freed grabbed him and pulled him down into the bushes. "They'll see us!"

"I've got visual," stated Laxus. "They are walking."

"Is he putting the moves on her?" Freed asked, a dark aura emanating from him, the kind that was only seen when Laxus was threatened.

Bickslow sighed. "Easy there, Papa Freed."

"No, I don't think-"

"… unfair!"

The three, upon hearing Ever's voice, leaned in and shut up.

"That's because they're your family and they love you."

Evergreen stopped. The three watched, rapt. "… maybe you're right."

Bickslow sniffed. "My little baby knows we love her."

Laxus glared back at him, but, somewhat comedically, his eyes were filled with a few tears as well. "You just shut up, we're gonna miss the conversation."

"Yes, she acknowledges us." Freed was full on weeping. "Our little girl-"

"Elfman doesn't even know where they're going," Laxus sighed. "Really, pal? That's not 'manly.'"

"Our Ever deserves better treatment than that!" Freed looked like he was about to kill someone.

"Dude, chill. That's a little-really- extreme."

. . . . . . . .

"Wow, this is good." Evergreen set her fork down on the plate. "You go there a lot?"

"Yep." Elfman said after swallowing. "It's one of Lisanna's favorites."

They were sitting on a bench in the same park, eating out of a takeout container. The woman shot a smile up at him. "You just love doing whatever your sisters want, don't you?"

"There a problem with that?"

She leaned back, looking up at the dark sky, specked with stars. "No no, not at all." Suddenly, she stood up and looked behind the bench into the trees and bushes. Elfman looked up at her, concerned.

"What-"

"Do you feel like we're being watched?"

. . . . . . . .

Freed pressed his back to the tree, palms sweaty. Laxus was pressed against the grass. Even Bickslow had somehow climbed into the tree and was concealed by the leaves.

"She's onto us!"

. . . . . . . .

Elfman turned and looked at the foliage, studying it very carefully. "Uh… no?"

Her body relaxed and she put a hand on her hip. "Maybe I'm just paranoid…"

. . . . . . . .

"Yes, yes, you're just paranoid," Freed muttered, nodding and willing her to believe the lie she was telling herself.

. . . . . . . .

Ever shrugged, said, "Eh," and sat back down. "Must be paranoid."

Elfman smiled at her and went back to eating.

. . . . . . . .

"…"

"…"

"Is the coast clear? I'm slipping."

"Bickslow, don't you dare fall out of that tree!"

. . . . . . . .

An hour or so later, Evergreen looked at her watch. "It's almost 12:30. Dammit!"

"We'd better get you home, then." Elfman put a hand around her shoulders and guided her down the path.

. . . . . . . .

"TOUCHING. I SEE TOUCHING!" Freed hissed, glaring after them.

"Chill, it's just her shoulders." Laxus shrugged at him.

"Gentlemen," Bickslow intervened. "If Ever doesn't see us at home…"

"…"

"…"

"Run."

. . . . . . . .

"Made… it… Nice… detour, Bickslow." Freed let out a puff of air and put his hand over his chest.

"Hah… Welcome."

"Hurry up and get in, look casual!" Laxus pushed them through the door.

Once they were all inside the apartment, Bickslow pushed the drapes aside a bit so they could all see out the window.

. . . . . . . .

"Well, this certainly was fun. Thank you, Elfman." Evergreen smiled at him.

Against his will, Elfman blushed, then looked away. "Would you… maybe want to go out again?"

She looked like she was trying hard not to laugh. "Does this answer your question?"

The brunette woman stood on her toes and grabbed Elfman's jacket, pulling him down to her. He did not complain. Their lips got closer…

Closer…

Closer…

_So close…_

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOUR DOING? THIS IS AGAINST THE RULES!"

Evergreen and Elfman both jumped back from their almost-kiss, (_Dammit, Freed,_ Ever thought. _Our lips were brushing!_)

"What are _you_ doing?" she shouted, pushing Elfman away from her. Freed shrank back at the look in her eyes.

"BICKSLOW HELP SHE'S HAVING AN EMOTION!" Freed fled back into the apartment. Evergreen could see Laxus and Bickslow running to their rooms.

"Damn straight she is!" Evergreen scowled and prepared to march into the room, but not before leaning up and giving Elfman a peck on the cheek. "I'll see you at the guild tomorrow. 'Night."

And with that she was in the apartment, slamming the door. Elfman blinked, put a hand to his cheek, and leaned closer to the door to hear what was happening. He could hear muffled crashes and choking sounds, then a few "Sorry! Off! Get… off!" and some, "WAS IT YOU WHO SPIED ON MY DATE? IT WAS, WASN'T IT!?" then, "Hey, it's your job to protect me! Why are you trying to kill me!" and a final, "You guys are so embarrassing!"

Elfman smiled and walked down the stairs to the exit of the building.


	3. Beast

Elfman sat, shaking, in front of the grave. The rain poured poured poured down on him, but he didn't mind.

"I… killed Lisanna," he choked out, tears flowing freely. Mira hovered behind him, tears on her face as well, mingling in with the wet of the rain. "I'm… just a monster."

His big sister crouched down and rubbed his shoulders.

. . . . . . . .

"Please, please leave me alone!" the girl, no more than twelve, held her arms up, palms out, trying to ward off the man. She didn't care what he was- a thug, rapist, criminal, perhaps even a guy who had had too much to drink, the same thing happened to all of them.

_She doesn't want it to happen anymore_

"Come on, now, pretty one." The man still approached. Evergreen choked on a sound rising up in her throat. "It's cold. Let me take you to an inn."

The girls curly brown hair fell in front of her closed eyes. She can't see where he is, what he's doing, but she never opens her eyes. Never.

_No no no no_

"Please." The runaway put as much conviction into her voice as possible. "I'm not- You're not safe."

The harsh, barking laughter allowed her to envision him. Head tossed back, smug look. She wanted to vomit. "I'm not safe, little one? I think you're not."

He lunged. She leaped out of the way, but stumbled on a loose stone in the path and fell. Shaking, she crawled back, eyes still tightly shut. She felt his hand grabbing her wrist, pinning her to the ground. Her self-defense instinct kicked in.

Evergreen opened her eyes.

The man chuckled, but it morphed into a hoarse scream as he turned to stone slowly. His grip on her wrists loosened, but she was still stuck. Evergreen pulled and tugged against the grip of the statue, and finally broke free, her wrists rubbed raw. Shaking, she watched as he crumbled away into dust.

She sobbed and hugged herself, rain beginning to fall on her. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it."

She doubled over and fell to her knees, crying.

_I'm just a monster_

_ I hate myself_

. . . . . . . .

"Ever, chin up," said the man with the helmet. He was nineteen, two years older than her. "You look down."

The seventeen year old girl didn't respond. Instead, she looked over at a boy across the guild hall. He was very tan and had messy white hair on his head.

Bickslow leaned over her shoulder to try and see what she's looking at. "What're you looking at?"

"When will Freed be back with the job?" she asked quietly.

Bickslow's mouth pressed confusedly. "Just a minute or so. What're you looking at?" he repeated.

Evergreen lifted a hand and pointed to the boy. "Who's he, Bickslow?"

"It's unusual for you to take interest in guys, Ever." Bickslow glanced down at her, worried. She looked almost like she's in a trance, her brown eyes dull. "But that's Elfman Strauss. He's Mirajane's little brother."

"Elf…man. He's the guy who-"

"Killed his sister? Yeah."

"You shouldn't say that!" Evergreen snapped, looking up at him. The dazed look had left, replaced with ferocity. "It was an accident, and he's probably dying on the inside. You shouldn't say, 'Killed his sister' like he's some homicidal creep!"

Bickslow held his hands up in surrender. "I didn't mean it like that. Chill out."

Her fists unclenched and she suddenly looked tired. "Accidentally killed her. I guess he feels just like a…" She put a hand over her heart. It ached for some reason. "Maybe like a beast."

. . . . . . . .

"Come on, Elfman!" Evergreen ran in front of him. "They're controlling you, love, snap out of it!" There were tears in her eyes and she shook.

"Evergreen!" Mirajane was pinned under a fall of rocks. "Run! This is just like the time with Lisanna!"

The brunette looked back, the look in her cursed eyes beyond desperate and horrified. "I won't leave him!"

Elfman, in a full on rage in his Takeover, roared and lunged. Evergreen moved to the side, then winced and fell to her knees. She could see the man standing on top of the cliff, his hand held out to her, the other directed at Elfman. He was trying to control them. She could feel the pull in her mind.

_Let him control you. Loose yourself. It'll be fine. Just give in…_

She snapped back to attention with the help of Mirajane's yells, but the pull still lingered. This whole job had been a trap to try and get Elfman and her. It all happened so fast: Mirajane shoving her out of the way of falling rocks, Elfman putting an arm out in front of her, then the way he froze. How he turned to look at her, a wild look in his eyes as he said one word: "Run."

Frequently throughout the brawl, the dark wizard tried to take over her mind as well, but she didn't let down her defenses. Couldn't, for Elfman's sake. She had to snap him out of it.

The boulder flying at her removed her from her thoughts. With a shriek, she ducked down and got to her feet.

"Elfman!" Then she lowered her voice and approached him cautiously, her hand held out to him. "Elfman." Her voice sounded so weak even to herself, so broken and desperate. "It's Ever. C'mon, you big lug, remember me."

His head tilted and for a second, she thought she saw recognition flash in his eyes. At the same time that happens, the pull in her head became stronger. A hoarse choking sound rose in her throat and she clutched her head, then breathed, pushing back the force.

"Evergreen, please, _please _be careful," Mirajane sobbed. "Do you know how he would feel if he knew he hurt or killed you?"

"Quiet, Mirajane. Please." Evergreen started walking towards him again. "It's all right, Elfman. It's just your Evergreen. Remember?"

"Don't listen to her!" the puppeteer shrieked in his annoying, shrill voice. "Kill her! This monster won't obey me! Kill her!"

"Don't order him around like some sort of tamed beast!" she shouted. The resistance of the pull now made her feel like she was going to be sick. The world spun, but she continued.

"E…ver?"

A smile lit up her face and the the tears spilled out. "Yes! C'mon, it's just Evergreen. Your fiancee." Like he was in pain, Elfman doubled over, literally clawing at his head. "Mirajane is here as well. You can remember your big sister, can't you? Come on, my love. Don't let this be like the last time you lost control." She put her hand on his face.

Perhaps that wasn't the best thing to say.

With an enraged roar, he lunged forward. Evergreen didn't make a sound as he bit down into her shoulder. Blood spattered his fur and his face.

"Evergreen!" Mira shouted, now struggling even harder to break free. "Don't worry! I'll try to go Satan Soul, and-"

Shaking, Ever lifted up her arms and wrapped them around his neck. Weakened from blood loss, the spell being cast on her was taking over. Still she fought it, hoping for just a few more minutes, if that.

"Elfman, I know you. I love you." Her voice was choked with tears and she squeezed him harder. "We're the same, you know. I think I told you that a while ago. We're the same." His jaws loosened only slightly. Blood gushed out of her wound. "People think we're monsters, just because of the things we've done. But we never meant to do those things. We never meant to be monsters."

Mira stopped shouting and listened. It might be the most anguished she'd ever heard Evergreen sound.

"You and I, Elfman. We're not… We're not…" Talking and thinking on her own was getting harder. The spell was succeeding. "You and I aren't beasts for others to control!"

With that, Elfman's grip loosened completely and Evergreen's knees gave out. He caught her.

"Ever!" Her head lolled and blood gushed still from the wound his jaws left. "Dammit… what have I done?"

"Elfman, don't look at her!" Mira shrieked. Magic was collecting around her. In her weakened state, she was trying to activate Satan Soul. "I think the spell is affecting her!"

"Ah yes, she'll be marvelous!" the puppeteer shrills. "Her magic is even better than yours, Elfman Strauss." Elfman looks up at the cliff, a dark look in his eyes. "The ability to turn even the most powerful wizard to stone with just a single look! Truly, she is a remarkable beast to control." At this, Elfman flinched. "And she's very, very beautiful."

What happened next was almost a blur. Mirajane saw Elfman gently set Evergreen down, and only a few seconds later, the dark wizard was flung off the cliff to the ground. Mirajane didn't think she's ever seen Elfman look so angry. Not even the time when Phantom Lord held her hostage.

Freeing herself, she rushed over and grabbed Elfman's pulled back arm. "Elfman, stop." Her voice was stern. "Without you under his control, he's weak."

Mirajane bent down over the man. "Release Evergreen from your control, please."

A few yards away, Evergreen began to sit up. The man laughed.

"S-she'll turn you all into statues! And you'll let her do it, because you don't want to hurt her! Or," An evil smile crossed his face, "maybe she should hurt herself." With a wave of a hand, Evergreen's hand was at her throat, her magic glowing in it. "She'll blast her head off if you-"

Elfman stomped on his stomach. With a cough of blood, the dark puppeteer fainted. Mirajane sighed with relief as Evergreen's hand fell away and she collapsed. Elfman rushed to her. The white-haired beauty smiled and whispered to no one as Elfman bent over his fiancee and checked her, kissed her, and helped her up, "You guys are right. You aren't beasts." Tears pricked Mira's blue eyes.

"Beasts couldn't love so strongly."


	4. Swap

A/N: I've kind of already gone on this a bit before, with this story I did about Ever spending the day with Mira and Lisanna. Then I decided that maybe it would be fun to write about Elfman with the Raijinshuu and Ever with his sisters... . . . . . . .

"I don't think you want to do this."

"Come one, it'll be okay."

"No. No it won't."

"Do you have a problem with my sisters?"

Evergreen buried her face in her hands and sighed. Around her and her boyfriend, the guild was in its typical chaos; she felt like there was even more chaos surrounding just them with their conversation.

"No, no, it's not that… I really, really like Mirajane and Lisanna, it's just…"

Elfman put his head at a closer level to hers on the table to try and get a look at her face. "It's just?"

"Well, I don't know… how awesome this would work out. I mean, you know, with my boys. They're… going to be _weird_ around you."

Elfman sighed. "Weird how? They're men."

"I'll excuse the use of that word this time. And if we go through with this plan, you will see what I mean." Evergreen buried her head into her arms. "I don't think it's a good idea."

"Of course it's a good idea." Bickslow popped up from behind her chair.

Evergreen jumped and blindly elbowed behind her, effectively hitting his stomach. Elfman laughed.

"Bickslow you jerk, were you eavesdropping on us?" Evergreen scowled.

With a hand against his stomach, he struggled to get a sentence out. In his stead, Freed slid his chair over from the table next to them (since when was he there?) and stared at his female teammate.

"Are you ashamed of us?" he asked darkly.

Evergreen's eyes got a desperate look. "_No. _You did not just play the guilt trip card."

"Are you?" Freed leaned in closer.

Ever leaned back. "N-no…"

Someone leaned out from behind Elfman. "You sure?" Laxus. (Where the hell were all these guys coming from?!)

"I'm sure!" she mumbled, slumping into her chair. Elfman laughed at her.

"Then you wouldn't mind going through with these arrangements?" Bickslow asked, regaining his ability to speak.

"You're evil," Evergreen sighed.

"Yes. Yes we are."

. . . . . . . .

"Wow, it'll be so nice to have you staying over for a couple of days!" Mira took Evergreen's hand and dragged her inside. "We'll do all sorts of fun things!"

"Y-yeah."

"Here, I'll take your bags to the guest room!" Lisanna smiled charmingly at her brother's girlfriend and scampered off into the Strauss home. Mira went after her, leaving Ever.

"You sure you'll be okay?" she said to Elfman, standing behind her.

"It's a two day job. What's the worse that could happen?" he asked, patting her head.

Evergreen peered behind him to look at her teammates and Laxus waiting. Bickslow gave her a cheerful wave and tongue-y grin. "You have no idea."

. . . . . . . .

"This is a nice guest room," commented Evergreen as she set down the bag Lisanna hadn't taken. "I like it."

"Oh, that's good." Mira smiled at her. (Did this woman ever _not_ smile?)

"Dinner will be ready in about a half-an-hour," said Lisanna.

"Okay then. I'll just… be here, then?"

"No, no." Mirajane shook her head. "You need to come talk to us."

"… Talk?"

. . . . . . . .

"What's this job about?" Elfman asked as they sat on the train.

Freed unfolded a map and a request flyer. "Well, it says- Laxus Dreyar, stop trying to jump out that window. Bickslow, watch him- that there's a group of some sort of creatures terrorizing this town." He folded the papers back up. "Should be pretty easy for you, Elfman."

"Of course it will be. I'm a man!"

"… I can see why Ever detests that habit of yours."

. . . . . . . .

Evergreen sat on the couch, swinging her legs. Lisanna sat across from her in a fluffy chair, chatting cheerfully, occasionally asking Ever for an opinion. Mirajane was in the kitchen, chopping some vegetables to put into a soup.

"So." Lisanna leaned forward in her chair. "What prompted this whole 'swap-families-for-a-while' thing?"

The brunette beauty stopped swinging her legs. Nervous, she rubbed the back of her neck. "Uhhh… Well, Elfman and I were talking and we decided that if at some point we decided to, uh… We, well, we decided it would be a good idea if we got to know each others families a bit better… In case we, you know…" Evergreen coughed and lowered her voice. "Decide to get married."

"Married? Who said married? I hear wedding bells. Is it going to be on the beach or what?" said a crazed voice.

Hesitantly, Ever turned around to see Mirajane standing behind the couch, a cutting knife in one hand, a smile on her face. "I… I said 'if,' Mirajane."

Disappointed, Mirajane retreated back to the kitchen.

. . . . . . . .

"Gah, it's cold!" Bickslow complained as they hiked up the mountain.

"Cold!"

"It's cold!"

"Gah, it's freezing!"

"Who cares?" Laxus asked them from the front of the group, barely heard over the howling wind. "It's better than being on that deathtrap."

Freed pulled the hood of his red parka tighter over his head. "You mean train?"

"Freed, we don't say that word!"

"Sorry, sir."

"It's really not that cold," Elfman shouted.

"That's because you're composed of mostly muscle!" Bickslow retorted.

"… Fair point."

. . . . . . . .

Evergreen burst out laughing. Lisanna and Mira looked over at her curiously.

"Evergreen?" Mirajane asked. "What in the world are you laughing about."

"I- I just realized that they went by train." She laughed again. "Oh my gosh, Laxus, poor Laxus."

"So he really does get motion sick, does he?" Lisanna asked, giggling.

She collected herself and nodded. "Oh yes. And it is a very amusing thing. Most of the time someone has to hold him so he doesn't throw himself out the window."

"That sounds like a very Natsu thing to do."

"It's more of a Dragon Slayer thing to do."

. . . . . . . .

Elfman grabbed one of the wolf-like creatures and threw it, narrowly missing Freed.

"Hey!" he shouted, brandishing his rapier and throwing a rune at one.

"S-sorry!" Elfman yelled back over the snowstorm.

"_Raging Thunder_!" A blast of lightning knocked a group of creatures away from Laxus.

Freed grinned. "Laxus, that was amazing!"

"You say that about everything I do." At this statement Freed opened his mouth to object, shut it, then shrugged in an agreeing manner.

"Hey, guys! Look! This ought to help!"

The three looked up. Freed, torn away from his fanboying, slapped his forehead, squeezed the bridge of his nose, and muttered, "Oh no."

Bickslow came flying down the mountain on his puppets.

An avalanche followed him.

Laxus swore. Freed simply sighed. Elfman stared, thinking to himself, "Ever did not lie when she said they are 'weird.'"

. . . . . . . .

Mirajane strained to reach the top shelf. She was three inches too short. Lisanna and Evergreen stood behind her, watching as the S-Class tried to reach the can of chocolate powder.

"Umph! We normally have Elfman get things off the top shelf," she laughed embarrassedly. "We Strauss women are not exactly known for our height."

Lisanna sighed.

"Here, let me." Evergreen sprouted her wings and alighted on the top of the counter, effortlessly getting the can for Mira. "There you go-"

The Fairy wizard looked down to see the Strauss sisters staring up at her with wonder.

_Oh no_.

. . . . . . . .

"Elfman, buddy, you under here?"

"What makes you think he's under _that _pile of snow?"

"Who's to say he's not?"

"Ugh…" Elfman lifted an arm out of the snow pile. "Guys, right here."

Four hands grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the snow. He flopped right back down, and Freed and Bickslow sat down with him.

"Bickslow, that was not a Man."

"… What?"

A hand, Laxus's, came down and snatched up the back of Bickslow's coat, yanking him into the air like a kitten.

"What the hell made you think that was a good idea?" Laxus scolded.

Bickslow opened and closed his mouth repeatedly while searching for an answer, then gave up and humbly brushed a snow pile of of Laxus's shoulder.

"It did help," Freed offered weakly, squeezing the bridge of his nose with a gloved hand. "All those wolf-y things are gone."

Laxus dropped Bickslow on top of Freed. "So it did."

Elfman simply glanced up, then sighed and put his head back down.

_These guys were really nut cases._

. . . . . . . .

"When you're done with that corner, Evergreen, can you dust the adjacent one?"

"A light bulb in my room needs to be changed, if you don't mind."

Out of spite, Evergreen let a cobweb drop into Mirajane's hair. The white-haired model brushed it off like nothing.

_I did not sign up for this._

. . . . . . . .

"How did it go with Nee-chan and Lisanna?" Elfman asked as they sat down on a couch in the guild hall.

Evergreen sighed and tucked a lock of curly hair behind her ear. "Oh, just peachy. I got turned into their personal maid for a day and a half, but they were very polite about it."

Elfman snickered and she elbowed him.

"Bickslow decided to bring an avalanche down on us," Elfman said, pulling her closer.

Surprised, she looked up and exclaimed, "That's all?"

"What do you mean, 'that's all?!"


	5. Protect

Laxus yanked her to him as another explosion echoes throughout the city. Evergreen grumbled, and he growled at her to stop complaining. The woman tilted her head back to look at him and stuck out her tongue. He smirked, then shielded her again as a person- Droy, she thought- flew through the wall next to them.

Attempting to make the most out of the situation, Evergreen pointedly looked through the hole and said to her tall companion, "Wow. Guess he's lucky to have all that extra padding."

Laxus glared down at her. His cheeks puffed out with the strain of trying not to laugh. Then he finally broke down and laughed really hard.

Neither of them were entirely sure how it happened, this whole mess. Erza and her team most certainly had something to do with it, something about the job they just came back from. But only an hour or so before, the guild had been normal for midday. Evergreen and her husband were just sitting at the bar, talking to Mira and Kinana, ignoring the clamor around them.

Repeatedly, Mira leaned over the counter and asked to feel her stomach. Each time Evergreen rolled her eyes and mumbled something about how she was only two and a half months along, barely showing, but Mira would insist. With a gentle nudge from Elfman, she would take Mirajane's hand and press it to her belly, suppressing a smile. The white-haired model had pulled back and was smiling and talking about how excited she was.

And then an explosion of some sort had ripped through the guild hall, sending almost everything flying. Blinking open her tightly shut eyes, she'd peered up to see her husband bent over her in his Take Over state, one arm tightly wrapped around her, the other holding up a beam that had fallen. Mira had been holding Kinana in her arms behind the bar and peering over the edge to check on them.

"Elfman," she had muttered, trying to stand. He'd squeezed her, a warning to stay down.

Worried, she did, watching the scene unfold; some guy stepping in through the rubble that once was the wall, claiming to be from a dark guild and demanding that something Erza's team had taken be returned. Evergreen had rolled her eyes and put a hand to her head when Natsu decided that instead of using his words, he would instead charge them and get thrown into a wall.

_Note to self: _she thought, _always tell my child to use their words. Otherwise, in this place, they will think actions are the way to go._

Natsu had managed to drive them out, though, and now the team of four was out looking for them while everyone else recovered. Elfman undid his Take Over and gently helped her to her feet. She'd staggered for a moment, then leaned against the bar, breathing deeply.

"Well," was what she'd said. "That came out of nowhere."

"Ever!" It was her team rushing to her, Laxus coming behind a bit more slowly. "You're fine, aren't you?"

She'd softly grabbed Freed's shoulders as he stumbled to a halt in front of her. (She'd found herself being more gentle lately. Hormones, she supposes.) "Of course I'm fine. I'm pregnant, not fragile."

"Stay with her." The four long-time friends had looked up at Elfman.

"Where are you going?" she'd asked quietly.

"Master is sending out a team to help Natsu and the others. I'm going with them. It's the manly thing to do."

"I don't care if it's 'manly!'" she'd shouted. Bickslow put a hand on her shoulder. "It could be dangerous. I don't want you to go, you could get hurt." Tears filled her eyes and she scrubbed at them. Stupid hormones.

Elfman grabbed her head and pulled her to his chest. "Hey, hey, it's fine. I'll be back. I'm sure it's not as dangerous as you think." Evergreen put her arms around him while he looked over at Laxus and the Raijinshuu. "I need you to watch her. Protect her. If anything happens to her, I'll…" He'd looked down at her and rubbed the back of her head, smiled, pried her arms away from him, and walked off with a few others.

Since then, foot soldiers had been sent in, but the guild was holding up pretty well. Freed and Bickslow had rushed off, leaving Laxus with her. ("That doesn't make any sense," she'd argued, "since you're the strongest." Rolling his eyes, he'd looked down at her. "That makes me best qualified to protect you, idiot. I thought fairies were smart.")

As much as Evergreen hated admitting it, she needed the protection. During pregnancy, a wizard would suffer from a severe decrease in magical power, she'd learned, and continued decreasing over the course of the nine months. Of course, Stone Eyes still worked, fortunately, because it allowed her to do things like-

"Laxus!" She lifted her frames and froze the foot soldier into a statue before the S-Class could even respond to her warning.

Amused, he looked down at her. "Is Elfman sure you need protecting?"

Flushed, Evergreen looked at her stomach. "He worries too much."

Laxus blasted a couple more away without responding. A few minutes later, Freed and Bickslow rushed back over, their defenses up. Evergreen sighed. "Seriously? All this protection for one pregnant lady? Is this not a bit overkill?"

Bickslow turned away from the battle briefly to give her his signature grin. "No it's not. You're _our _pregnant lady."

"That's… sweet."

"I'll set up a rune wall," Freed found the time to say, "and Laxus can leave. Wendy offered to stay with you, so you won't be totally alone. Just wait- hey, where are you going?"

"Elfman!"

The group had come back. Elfman seemed to be in better condition than many (Max was being carried and had what looked like a nasty head wound), at least from her far away point of view, but was still covered in wounds. Freed and Laxus grabbed her arms and yanked her back.

"Like hell you're going out there!" Laxus angrily barked at her. "It's a battlefield, Ever."

"Damn you, let me go!"

"Now, now, Evergreen Strauss. Not in front of the baby-"

"You shut up, Bickslow, or you're getting turned into a statue!"

"I'll go with her." Wendy quietly stepped forward. "I can offer some protection, and we can bring him back. Then you can set up the rune barrier around us, Freed-san."

"I don't care who goes with me, I'm going anyway." Ever took another impatient step forward; Freed grabbed her again, then handed her arm to Wendy. "Okay, seriously? He's fifteen feet away."

"No chances. I don't fancy having your husband rip my head off."

Wendy and Evergreen met Elfman halfway and help him over to where Freed and the others were fighting off the dark guild. Elfman collapsed to his knees and, alarmed, Evergreen fell with him, putting her hands on his bare shoulders. (His shirt is gone, she noted with aggravation. Every time.)

"Elfman," she said gently. "It's fine. I'll protect you."

Shaking slightly, her husband put a hand on her arm. "Laxus… needs to go help… Natsu."

She removed one of her hands from his shoulder and stroked his hair. "He will, he will." The brunette nodded to Wendy, and the girl began treatment on him. "Wendy's just gonna patch you up a bit, then you and I will stay here. I'll protect you."

"Gah, you're the one that needs protecting," he mumbled.

His wife quirked an eyebrow and pursed her lips. Without a word, she lifted a hand and sent an orb of magic at an oncoming soldier behind her. The ground in front of him exploded and multiple dark wizards were sent flying back.

Evergreen smiled sweetly. "I'm sorry, honey, say that again?"

Wendy chuckled nervously. Her teammates and Laxus smiled as they dashed off. Elfman looked up at her as she panted for breath, tired from simply the one blast of magic. He laughed.


	6. Family

"Man, that was a tough job."

Evergreen sighed and pulled her hair away from her face as she got off the train. Her teammates were waiting for her on the platform, looking just as weary, but excited to be home.

"Sure was," Freed agreed. "And you, young lady, almost got seriously injured." He waved a finger in her face like a scolding parent. The woman scoffed and slapped his hand away.

"Well, I've got to get home. I need to make sure that the house hasn't come crashing to the ground while I was gone."

Bickslow laughed. "You make it sound like your family can't control themselves with you away."

Evergreen put her hand on her hip and sighed. "You have no idea."

. . . . . . . .

"Elfman probably forgot to buy stuff for dinner," Evergreen mumbled to herself as she walked down the path to her home. In her arms was a bag filled with food. Her house came into sight. She sighed with relief. "Still standing. Miracles do happen."

She hadn't taken more than a few steps into the house and shut the door before a shrill voice shrieked, "Mama!" and a little girl, about four years of age, came barreling down the hallway.

Evergreen bent down, set aside the grocery bags, and let the little girl run into her outstretched arms, where she was embraced with much enthusiasm. "Rosalie! How's my little fairy?"

The little girl simply giggled and buried her face into her mothers chest, then exclaimed into it, "Great! You'll never guess what Papa and I did."

"I won't?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow and releasing her. She crossed her legs under her and held the white-haired girls hands. "Hmmm. Did you guys bake a cake together? Did you, Rosie?"

"You smelled it, didn't you?" Elfman poked his head out of the kitchen.

"Yes." Evergreen laughed. "Did you burn it?"

"Well." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Rosalie and I burnt the first one, but this one turned out."

Evergreen smiled and stood. Rosalie reached up and grabbed her mothers hands in her own tiny ones and proceeded to walk her back into the kitchen. "Mama, we made your favorite! And we also made dinner!"

The brunette eyed her abandoned groceries. "You _did_? Mama thought Papa would've forgotten."

"Hey!" Elfman shouted.

Ever shrugged best she could. "It's happened before, Elfman. Don't act like it hasn't."

"We were in the middle of decorating it," Elfman said as they approached the counter. "Rosie went a little wild with the frosting."

Rosalie turned her dark blue eyes up to her parents. "Auntie Lisanna said that frosting is the most important part of the cake."

"And Natsu taught that to Lisanna," Elfman sighed. "Thank you, Natsu, for turning my little girl into a frosting monster."

Evergreen stared at the mass of messy frosting on the cake, then tried to suppress her laughs as she patted the girls head. "It's… so pretty, Rose. Mama loves it!" She straightened and grabbed a few bowls off the counter and put them in the sink. "So what did you two make for dinner?"

"Potato stew," Rosalie chirped, pointing a chubby finger to the stove. "The kind that Uncle Freed makes for me."

"Well, I'm starved. So hows about we eat, then I can go shower, and we can all go to bed. I'll tell you about my job while we eat."

Rosalie tugged on her mothers pants. "Really? Did something exciting happen?"

Evergreen smiled. "Of course something exciting happened. When does something exciting _not _happen?"

Evergreen and Rose cleared off the table and set it while Elfman got the stew ready. Evergreen ignored the complaints of the little girl as she put the cake in the cabinet where she couldn't reach. "After dinner," she told her repeatedly. The little girl pouted, but retreated to the table. Evergreen smiled after her, then shut the cabinet.

The family of three sat down at the table, and Rosalie immediately fired off as many questions as she could ask. Elfman smiled at them while Evergreen struggled to answer all of her daughters questions in order and keep up with the ones still incoming. Eventually she caught a break when the little girl decided it was time to eat her dinner.

. . . . . . . .

"Hah, that was such a long job," Ever sighed as she collapsed on her bed. "I'm so tired… Could you bathe Rosie tonight? I promise I'll take over tomorrow. I just want to sleep for a long time."

"When don't you want to sleep for a long time?" Elfman asked.

She removed her face from the blankets and looked at him, as though she were considering. "That is actually a good point." She stood up and closed the distance between them, then stood on her toes and kissed him.

"Ick!"

The two were interrupted by their daughter standing in the doorway, waiting for her bath. Her nose was crinkled in distaste, and her tongue poked out of her mouth. "Kissing is gross!" she complained.

Elfman chuckled, walked over to her, and picked her up. "Someday you're not going to think that. That is the day that I might commit murder as well."

"Huh?"

. . . . . . . .

"Can't you two walk faster?" Rosalie, dressed in a gray and white dress, puffed out her cheeks, then rushed back the path to her parents, grabbed their hands, and pulled. "Levy said she had a book she wanted to read to me!"

"We're walking as fast as we can, Rosie," Elfman said. He nudged Evergreen, who was falling asleep standing. She had not gotten her sleep like she had wanted and was still exhausted. "And Mama is tired."

"Why's Mama tired?"

"I do not have the energy of a four year-old, Rosalie." Ever yawned. "I have the energy of an exhausted 26 year-old woman. There's a vast difference."

"What's 'vast' mean?"

"I'll tell you later."

Elfman held the door open for the two as they walked into the guild. "Morning," he greeted everyone. They received plenty of "Good mornings" back.

"Levy, Levy, Levy…" Rose looked around, mumbling the Solid Script wizards name under her breath. "I want Levy."

"Hey, look who it is!"

The girl turned around, a big smile on her face. "Uncle Bickslow! Uncle Freed!" She threw herself onto the closer Freed. "I missed you!"

"Did you?" Freed asked, patting her head. "We missed you, too. Did your mom tell you about our job and what she did? Your mom is really strong, you know."

"Oh, stop Freed," Evergreen said with false modesty. "You'll make me blush."

Bickslow cackled at them. Rosalie squirmed away from the green-haired man upon sight of someone else. She squealed when she saw him, Levy apparently forgotten.

"Uncle Laxus! Uncle Laxus!"

The blonde man, standing next to the request board, looked down at the child tugging on his coat, a ghost of a smile on his lips. He had to bend over a little bit to ruffle her hair. Rosalie giggled, then looked up at him with pleading blue eyes. She held up her arms.

"Uncle Laxus, would you carry me on your shoulders?"

Evergreen laughed behind her hand at her husbands dismayed expression. "I'm the one who carries her like that…" he mumbled.

"You look like a kicked puppy," Lisanna noted, coming up from behind with Mirajane.

"Oh, good morning, Mira, Lisanna," Ever greeted, not taking her eyes of her daughter and her "uncles." "Rosie is trying to get her uncle Laxus to carry her on his shoulders."

"Why do you want to get on my shoulders?" Laxus argued with her. "Your dad carries you all the time."

The white-haired girl pouted and held up her arms a bit more insistently. "Papa does, but I wanted to get on _your _shoulders."

"Laxus, you're arguing with a four year-old," Freed noted, smiling. "Just carry her. You'll hardly notice Rosalie, she's so small."

The tall man sighed, ran a hand through his hair, then scooped up the girl and hoisted her onto his shoulders. "There ya go. Is it everything you dreamed of, Rosalie?"

"Take me over there!"

"What am I, your pack mule? Ah, fine. Stop pulling my hair!"

"Guess I'll have to wait a few more minutes to say good morning to her." Mirajane smiled and headed over to her normal position by the bar. Lisanna waved goodbye and went to go mingle with Natsu and Juvia.

"What's wrong?" Elfman asked his wife, seeing her thoughtful expression.

"I was thinking about that job that the Master asked us to take together," she murmured, half to herself. "I was thinking about leaving Rosalie with the Raijinshuu, but I'm scared their crazy will rub off on her. Maybe leaving her with Mira and Lisanna would be a better choice." She sighed and hung her head. "I don't even like that the two of us have to go on a job at the same time. We agreed not to ever leave at the same time when we found out I was expecting her."

"I don't think we can argue with the Master. It's a pretty big job, Ever. It wouldn't be manly of us to deny taking it." He ignored the slap on the back of his head. "And besides, I don't think that their 'crazy' will rub off on her."

"Okay, Rose, this is how to break someone's wrist." The two paled and looked over to see Laxus showing Rosalie how to twist someone's hand to break their wrist. Evergreen scowled and stormed across the guild hall while Elfman sighed.

"Then again, I have been wrong before."


End file.
